Railway passenger numbers hit record high over Lao New Year

Passenger numbers on the Laos-China Railway hit a record high over Lao New Year, with stations in Kasy and Nga opening for the first time since the railway became operational in December.
The Laos-China Railway Company said a standard train with a top speed of 120 km/hour was put into service on April 13, while two EMU trains carried passengers between Vientiane and Luang Prabang and two more travelled between Vientiane and Xay district in Oudomxay province.
This meant that EMU trains made four round trips and the standard train did one round trip each day.

The provision of both EMU and standard trains is a milestone for the railway and significantly increases passenger capacity.
Since the launch of the Laos-China Railway, the “Lane Xang” EMU train has been running regularly and the volume and type of cross-border transport has been steadily increasing, reflecting both the growth in passenger traffic and freight transport.
As of April 10, 468 EMU trains had made journeys, carrying 244,400 passengers, with the maximum number of passengers on one day being 3,160 people.
In addition, freight trains have made 589 cross-border journeys, carrying 365,400 tonnes of goods.
Since the inauguration of the railway, more than 100 types of goods have been transported, including rubber, bio-fertiliser, basic consumer goods, electronics, electrical components, communications equipment, automobiles, textiles, vegetables and flowers.
To meet people’s diverse travel needs and enhance passenger capacity, the Laos-China Railway Company has decided to run a standard train with a top speed of 120 km/hour.
This train can carry 732 passengers and has seven carriages, of which six contain ordinary seats and one has superior seating.
The train has drinking water, electrical sockets, toilets and other facilities and each carriage has signs written in Lao, Chinese and English.
The K12/K11 regular train makes one round trip each day between Vientiane and Boten, stopping at Phonhong, Vangvieng, Kasy, Luang Prabang, Nga, Xay and Nateuy.
The K12 train leaves Vientiane at 9am and arrives at Boten at 14:20pm, while on the return journey the K11 service leaves Boten at 16:40pm and arrives at Vientiane at 21:55pm.
To ensure safety, the Laos-China Railway Company conducts regular checks of equipment and facilities.
The rail operator also trains staff in correct driving techniques, equipment maintenance and systems operation, which are in line with set standards to ensure safe and smooth running of the railway and the efficiency of train crews.

By Times Reporters
 (Latest Update April 18, 2022)